Over 250 days without a budget in PA

Red Lion Area School District is taking cost-cutting steps to avoid hittingbankruptcy by the end of the fiscal year because of the state budget impasse, Supt. Scott Deisley said in a letter.

The letter, dated March 4, is addressed to members of the school district and is posted on the district’s website.

The letter states that the district’s cash flow for the remainder of the school year is “dire.” The state has been without a budget for 252 days, and the state owes the Red Lion Area School Districtabout $9.7 million.

“Unless we take some extraordinary measures right now, the district will likely face bankruptcy by the end of the fiscal year,” Deisley wrote in the letter.

The letter also states the district will focus on essential classroom needs first, then debt service and utilities, followed by payroll.”All other expenses will be denied,” it states.

“Weare not on the brink ofbankruptcy,” he said, but if nothing changes at the state level, “certainly that’s a reality for everydistrictin this state. We wanted to go out in front and let people know, it’sbecoming ridiculous that there’s no state budget.”

School board member Joel Ogle said the district had been saving up for a few years to buy new computers for the elementary students because the ones they have are old. But the computers can’t be replaced and other needed projects can’t be done without the money coming in.

The district wants to be able to make it through the end of the year.It’s possible, depending on how long the impasse lasts, the district might have to close its doors.

Other districts

A handful of other local school districts reached Tuesday said that while they’re doing OK with cash flow right now, they remain concerned and hopeful that state officials will come up with a budget resolution soon.

“Weare trying to manage the situation as best we can. Our priority is to keep schools open, educate kids as best we can with the resources we have to work with,” said Richard Snodgrass, the York City School District’s business manager. “Thoseresources, unfortunately, to a large extent are at the mercyof the state as to what we’re going to get.”